The Lonesome Guild
Preview
The Power of Friendship
EA SCOUT the last line of defense for buying on Steam's Early Access
by Camrin Santchi
previewed on PC
Connection is Key
One of the biggest parts of Role Playing Games is the connections that are formed, the characters that players grow attached to over the course of the journey. Some RPGs will actually add certain benefits for growing closer to your allies - the additional powers that Commander Shepard can get after completing the Loyalty Missions for their companions in Mass Effect 2, or minor passive buffs that the allies themselves get at max Friendship or Rivalry in Dragon Age II, dependent on how you choose to interact with them. Most of the time this is
The Lonesome Guild is an RPG that's entirely built around the bonds of friendship, taking place in a world that seems like it definitely could use some good old fashioned camaraderie. Along with many typical strifes one may find in a world like war or famine, a strange mist has started forming that seems to corrupt anyone that it touches. Escaping this mist is one of the first main priorities of the player, and how they meet some of the initial characters.
Players take the role of Ghost, an aptly named spirit with no memories, and are immediately met with their first of many friends to be, a tech savvy rabbit by the name of Davinci. Working with Davinci introduces many of the mechanics of The Lonesome Guild, which puts an emphasis on teamwork and the bonds forged between others.
Grow Stronger, Together
In combat, Ghost temporarily possesses one of his allies, allowing the player to control them and enhancing their strength- once the Guild has accumulated multiple members, ones that you are not controlling will sometimes call out for Ghost- switching to them causes a temporary super mode that ignores enemy resistances and does enhanced damage, as well as building up a gauge for an 'Ultimate' attack of sorts that does incredible AoE damage to all enemies nearby. Players can find equipment for each character that provide stat buffs, bonuses to the Ultimate attack, as well as rare flowers that when consumed provide a permanent increase to a stat. Early on The Lonesome Guild isn't overly challenging, but accumulating more of these resources to better prepare for later situations when things get tougher is always a classic of the RPG genre - even if most players tend not to use their hoard.
In exploration, there are often puzzles that require multiple characters. Pressure switches to raise gates, boxes that require more than one person's strength to push, things of that nature that reinforce the game's ideology of friendship, of working together to accomplish things that cannot be resolved alone. At one point, we see that there are some puzzles that require specific character interactions, Ghost making use of mysterious flames or even finding odd memories that seem familiar even if they don't seem to belong to them. These mechanics add to the variety of puzzles that the player can find and solve, and also hint that there may be even more to Ghost than meets the eye.
Along with combat and exploration, The Lonesome Guild features small campfires that the party can rest at to restore their health - and as the party progresses through the game there will be options to have conversations with the party members, which will raise your bond with them depending on the options chosen- bond can also be raised through other means like completing side quests, but raising bond whenever possible is important since raising bond level allows players to unlock skills further along each individual character's skill tree.
More To Come
This reviewer only got a chance to see the first three or so hours of The Lonesome Guild, but from what fights, puzzles, and friends we got to see already, when this game releases in full it is sure to be a grand time. Many new characters, more challenging fights, and tying together the introductory plot teases including Ghost's amnesia, the corruptive mist, and so much more that has only been hinted at. When The Lonesome Guild drops later this year, this reviewer will be all too happy to rejoin the Guild and continue the adventure.
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Recommend
There are no guarantees - but we'd bet our own money on this one. If you're going to take a chance with yours, odds are good this one will deliver.
